PSAPs and enterprises urged to vocalize need for Next Generation 911

Even though it’s found itself under the microscope of government officials and experts in the E911 field, Next Generation 911, the movement to instill the foundation for public emergency communications services in a wireless mobile world, is still much in the process of becoming a reality. While E911 manufacturers and leaders have great expectations for this initiative that would significantly improve the 911 service infrastructure, many U.S. states continue to falter on their efforts to implement legislation for the ultimate safety of the general public, and those within campuses and enterprises.

Today’s 911 system is still designed around legacy telephone technology, and is unable to handle the text, data, images and video that much of the country has become accustomed to in personal communications and that is critical to future transportation safety and mobility advances. The growing usability of highly mobile communications is necessitating capabilities that aren’t found in this current 911 system, and is making it more and more critical for emergency call centers to easily connect with a wide range of devices on the market, identify the location of the caller, and recognize the technology generating the call in order to transmit the call to the proper responder in a timely fashion.

According to Theresa Stockton, operations manager for E911 hosted solutions leader 911 ETC, PSAP dispatchers are bombarded with inappropriate callers and, even worse, the inability to properly locate a caller, which could certainly jeopardize the safety of all parties involved.

Working directly with telcos and PSAPs nationwide for the past decade, Stockton is more than aware of the issues they face and stresses that the U.S. is in dire need of a formal process so that enterprise customers can be granted the opportunity to test their current E911 systems during a period of time that respects the PSAPs’ time and resources. That’s why she is urging PSAPs, as well as enterprise customers, to vocalize their frustrations and push their respective states to comply with E911 legislation. “As a 911 community, we can do a better job educating the public of the vital need for E911 implementations, and we can also do a better job enforcing E911 legislation,” says Stockton.

Since it’s sure to be awhile before Next Generation 911 officially makes its way across the country, Stockton suggests organizations immediately look into implementing E911 technologies into their existing PBX (News – Alert) equipment. By working with a proven and experienced E911 solutions provider, enterprise customers and PSAPs alike can strengthen their respective abilities to place and process all types of emergency requests, be it from a mobile device, VoIP phone, or text message.

For more information on 911 ETC and its portfolio of solutions for the enterprise, education and SMBs, click here.

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